She's a meringue-utan! Endangered ape guzzles down her birthday treat - a pavlova

By Leon Watson


Mmm, tasty... This sweet-toothed ape's birthday pavlova has gone down very well.

Dewi, the Sumatran orangutan, was spotted licking her fingers after she wolfed down the treat at Melbourne Zoo in Melbourne, Australia.

The ape, who turned one, was presented with a gluten free version of the dessert as her father who also ate the cake is gluten intolerant.

Endangered: Dewi licks pavlova from her hands on her birthday at Melbourne Zoo in Melbourne, Australia


Despite once being widespread throughout the forests of Asia, orangutans are now confined to just two islands, Sumatra and Borneo.

Sumatran orangutans - like their Borneo brothers - are declining in numbers in the wild due to poachers and the spread of palm oil plantations which damage their habitat.

The species has been classified as 'Critically Endangered' by the IUCN, the World Conservation Union.

Latest data from 2008 estimates that there are now only around 6,600 remaining in the wild.


Sumatran orangutans are endangered in the wild due to the spread of palm oil plantations, which clear their rainforest habitat



source:dailymail